The present invention relates to a cable fault locator and more particularly to an apparatus for locating cable faults in underground or overhead power cables by monitoring the ground fault current at preselected locations and transmitting the data to a remote monitor or computer.
The present mode of locating a fault in power cables requires disconnecting all ends of the cable, putting a signal consisting of high voltage pulses thereon, and then, by traveling parallel to the cable, the signal is traced to the point of the fault. This concept of fault location is rather time-consuming.
Another fault indicator and locator for buried cables is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,771,049. In this particular patent, an underground cable fault indicator and locator is provided to indicate the location of a fault or short circuit in the cable. The cable is passed through the apertures of a plurality of spaced transformer sensors connected to indicating elements. Upon the occurrence of a fault in the cable, the indicating element provides a visual indication of the section of cable in which the fault has occurred. As illustrated in FIG. 1, lamps are usually provided above the surface for being illuminated responsive to a short occurring in that section of the cable.
Another electrical ground fault detector is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,579,280. In this particular ground fault detector, a ring-type current transformer is utilized for triggering a silicon controlled rectifier for activating an alarm responsive to current flowing through the supply line to indicate a ground fault.